In late January, Maine Republicans began making their choice for a Republican nominee to face President Barack Obama.

Saturday, Feb. 11, is the final day for voting in most counties. The Maine GOP said Washington County has been postponed until Feb. 18, however. The Maine Republican Party website provides full details about that.

As best I can tell, this caucus works like others that are non-binding—people select their presidential preference in what amounts to a straw poll. There’s a lengthy explanation of the process on the Maine GOP page linked above.

The Atlantic shed some light on what amounts to a complex situation for a small state like Maine:

Republican presidential candidates debated in Jacksonville on January 26. (Photo used with permission; David S. Holloway / CNN)

Could anyone really watch the CNN debate in Jacksonville on Thursday and overlook the fact that the two strongest performers in the evening’s exchanges were former Sen. Rick Santorum (Penn.) and Rep. Ron Paul (Texas)?

Politifact cleared up The Rick Perry Secession Myth. [Screen snip from PolitiFact site; for commentary purposes only.]Aside from the intensity businessman Herman Cain inspired early on, and aside from the passion Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) has always inspired in his supporters, the remaining GOP candidates for 2012 are a very relaxed group. Cain is an energized orator, and few can match Paul’s fervor, but the rest of the candidates lean towards deliberative pragmatism.

That isn’t to say that all the GOP candidates don’t bring assets to the table—they do.

There’s a new intensity in the GOP field, courtesy of the Perry Factor, and it’s illustrated by The Washington Post’s snarking about the way Southerners talk.

Herman Cain announced his candidacy in Atlanta on May 21. [Screen shot from TV]Never let it be said that Herman Cain isn’t serious about the US presidency. He’s crisscrossed the United States to meet and greet the grassroots, and most who hear him speak come away impressed. Not a Beltway insider, Cain doesn’t just have to convince Americans on Main Street he’s our best bet. He’s going to have to persuade some Old Guard Republicans.

It appears the OGR might want to take Cain more seriously. The man Karl Rove recently referred to as the “talk radio guy in Atlanta” is rising in the polls.

Now legacy media both conservative and left of center are taking note of Herman Cain. CBS News said, “Many pundits including Fox News contributor Frank Luntz and several focus groups have declared the former chairman and CEO of Godfather's Pizza the winner of the the first GOP debate, which was held yesterday. However, before last night, the average American may not have heard of the Tea Partier who prides himself on the fact that he has never held public office. Now currently the third most popular search term on Google, people are interested in hearing more of what he has to say.”

“When the course of civilization takes an unexpected turn—when, instead of the continuous progress which we have come to expect, we find ourselves threatened by evils associated with past ages of barbarism—we naturally blame anything but ourselves.”—F. A. Hayek, ‘The Road to Serfdom’ (pg. 65)

Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) announced his presidential exploratory committee on Fox News' Sean Hannity show on Monday. [Photo from Rep. Paul, US House]Texas Congressman Ron Paul appeared on the Sean Hannity Show on Monday, and the Libertarian leaning Republican confirmed possibilities for a 2012 presidential run.

“We are going to announce I’m going to form an exploratory committee,” Paul said. That announcement will presumably happen, according to Politico, on Tuesday afternoon in Iowa at the Holiday Inn near the Des Moines airport.

Paul is making the talk show rounds, appearing on programs like 'Fox and Friends' and dropping by the chatty den 'The View'. Along the way, Paul is also promoting and signing his latest book, ‘Liberty Defined.’

On 'Fox and Friends' Tuesday morning Paul pointed out two of the biggest problems in the U.S.—“militarism and welfarism.” He rightfully said the Federal Reserve does not have constitutional authority to print money and as far as a theme goes, not much has changed for Paul over the years.

Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) said President Barack Obama's support for Petrobras oil drilling is "ridiculous."Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) wants answers from the US taxpayer supported Export-Import bank about a $2 billion loan to Brazil for offshore drilling. Vitter’s home state is suffering under a moratorium imposed by President Barack Obama. Vitter said Louisianians “are frustrated” and he wants to know “why permitting domestically is nearly stalled…”

Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) had questions about ExIM—nine years ago when he asked Congress to reject the reauthorization of ExIm for “economic, constitutional and moral reasons.”